Everything you need to understand or teach Small Deaths by Charles de Lint.
Bob explains that "small deaths" are "those pivotal moments in a person's life that change it forever; a love affair gone wrong, not getting into the right post-graduate program, stealing a car on a dare and getting caught, that kind of thing. They're the moments that some people brood on forever; right now they could have the most successful marriage or career, but they can't stop thinking about the past, about what might...